


Meeting

by Iceheartwarrior, Masium



Category: The Blackout Club (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, General mentions of past abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:55:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,927
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23918653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Iceheartwarrior/pseuds/Iceheartwarrior, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Masium/pseuds/Masium
Summary: In the light of discovering a path unturn, you never know who you'll meet
Kudos: 1





	Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> Auice belongs to Masium, Amaya belongs to me.. so does Chase

This was a nightmare. It just had to be.

Auice refused to believe that any of this was real. She refused to believe that the Voice had permanently marked her, she refused to believe that her parents didn’t know, and she refused to believe that she had been found by another child. A child with the symbol of another Voice in her eyes.

She froze for what felt like years, neither party moved, simply stuck staring at one another. She needed to get away, she needed to move and to run. She scrambled backwards, her chest heaving as she backed into a tree. She could barely feel her legs, they ached from her position in the ground and her entire body shook.

This wasn’t real, it couldn’t be, she needed to wake up.

Yet no matter how hard she tried to believe, she knew that this was all real. She could feel the coldness from the mud, the burning from the symbol around her eye and the lines that ran across her stomach. She hated it.

The silence was unnerving.

The whole forest went silent and she hated it. She hated the unnatural silence.

She found reason to abruptly hate everything in that moment.

Having to always hide away during the day, having to constantly run around at night, the sounds of talking, water rippling and leaves shaking in the wind.

She hated everything, but she couldn't of hated one thing more than the wretched silence. She watched as the other girl backed up, frantic in her moments as her own heart picked up it's pace, beginning to race as her controlled breathing turned to panic, causing the symbol on her chest to abruptly heave and pulse in time to her heart, and cause pain to erupt on her body, and cause her lungs to basically collapse.

Her legs wobbled as she balled her hands in the fabric of her hoodie, clutching where the organ that allowed her to breathe resided, collapsing moments later. Each breath coming out as a wheezing breath and constantly gagging.

As the child collapsed forward, Auice flinched, her hands moving up to protect her head as she waited to be struck. But her fear slowly turned to confusion as she heard the hacking coughs coming for the other girl. Nervously, she peeked out from behind her trembling hands, before freezing as she saw the girl on the ground.

She had no idea what she was supposed to do. Could she even do anything?

Slowly, after what felt like years, she stood. Slowly approaching the other girl, the lines burning on her stomach as she looked over the girl. What was wrong with her? Had she been injured throughout the night? Why did her eyes match one of the other Voices?

She froze at the final thought. Had this girl gone through a similar thing as she had? Had she also been marked by her own Voice without her knowledge?

No, she knew that this Voice would never do that, they were too kind to perform such an action. They would have asked her.

But, then why hadn’t the Voice asked her?

Unable to control herself, she writhed and choked, desperately trying to regain the shallow breathing she once had in order to keep steady.

The only sound was her coughing and wheezing, before the grass rustled and the other girl shifted forward, frozen in fear and confusion, not sure what to do yet at the same time worried. Amaya felt like she was trying to cough up her own lungs, it hurt so much. But finally, after what felt like forever, she managed to stop hacking bit by bit, even though she still wheezed as she pushed up and leaned back against a tree. Thankful now for somehow pulling herself away from the panic attack.

When she managed to see the other girl clearly, she couldn't help but wonder why they stared at her like that, well actually she knew why. She randomly collapsed to the ground coughing and pretty much looked like she was dying. Or was it because she seen her eyes? They weren't hard to miss, but it did make her a little self conscious. At least hers was less noticeable from a distance compared to the other girl, who had their eye from the red doors.

She knew it somehow included SAO, as per usual with anyone from this town with messed up features, but she didn't know how. Maybe she was marked the same way Amaya was, with their symbol. She wasn't too sure, but she hoped they asked like DFY did. Her eyes gleamed just a bit brighter of her original eye color, and she felt it. The first thing she said "agh what..the? Pulsing..e..ye. so we..ird" it really felt odd.

If the girl cared for her approach, she didn’t show it. She seemed to be slightly in pain but managed to move herself to lean against the tree. She was recovering at least, but what the hell had happened? Why did she just start coughing so intensely and why did she collapse?

Auice saw the girl’s gaze hover over her eyes, she didn’t know what to do but once she had heard the girl’s comment, she gently placed a hand over her eye to cover it up. It felt like an ugly scar currently, she couldn’t show it to anyone she knew.

It would make her return to the boxcar simply impossible.

She noticed the girl’s eyes flowed slightly, a brilliant cobalt escaping into the darkness, a far cry from the red that leaked from in between her fingers.

She wished she had her mask at this moment, she wished she at least had something to cover her identity. But, the only comfort she received was the knowledge that she knew the girl’s face as well. Although she doubted that it could matter much to her, even if she did report it to the Voice.

She shuffled slightly in place. She wasn’t sure what to do. Was she supposed to speak? To run? To fight?

She was at a loss.

Amaya's whole body was tense, which was just her preparing to haul herself up off the ground, of course she had so many questions but she kept silent, feeling like it would be rude to ask why the girls eyes were red, when her own eyes were glowing blue. There was a difference between them, one she couldn't figure out. She used the tree she was leaning against as a leverage, even though she could breathe once again, that didn't mean it didn't still sting.

But it still brought on the question of why exactly it hurt like it did. Or why she could feel every pulse as if it were her own beating heart. Amaya noticed how she reacted to what she said in comments to her own situation, and she couldn't help but think internally that they were perfect opposites. It sounded ridiculous, but what wasn't at this point? It was hard to believe that any of this was real.

But she knew better.

She had ran from her mother for a reason, and even though she escaped that situation, she never got over the trauma, and now with the looming war of Voices within their brains that somehow have control over them. She was positive she would break down one day, from stress and bottled emotions. But she would hold out for as long as she could, hold out for her friends. Hold on to life just to see them make it out alive.

Maybe being a martyr is her way of coping, because it's basically suicide.

Auice was still frozen. It seemed they both were for now.

She needed to do something, the girl looked as if she was in complete pain. She didn’t know anything about medical items aside from bandages, but it was obvious that she didn’t need them. She needed actual medical attention, and not the type that Auice frequently received to lower any suspicion.

She took a deep breath as she thought, eventually calling out to the girl.

“Um, are you alright?”

Her Voice felt hoarse from her tears, it sounded just as rough. It clearly didn’t sound friendly but at least she was trying to help. She just hoped that she would receive a straight answer.

“How can I help you?”

She felt robotic, she’d asked the question a thousand times back when her parent’s friends had spoken to her. It always came out monotone, no matter how hard she tried she just couldn’t get out of the habit. But it wasn’t something that worried her, strangely, it felt comforting to her, as if it helped her to remember easier times.

It was the complete silence that yet again started her nerves, it didn't help that she felt completely weak either. The tree she was using to keep herself from collapsing again felt like a lifeline, though she started when the other girl spoke "Um, are you alright?" She clearly had an easier time talking than Amaya did, despite the roughness in her voice. "How can I help you?" That single question, a simple one, almost made the celestial teen lose balance and topple over. Luckily she was clinging to the tree so that didn't happen.

But still it was a surprise to hear that question. "I'm..as ok..ay as one..can g..et with.." damn it, why was it so hard to speak?! "Tampered...lun..gs" maybe that's the word, maybe not. She wasn't sure if she could explain it at the moment with how much it already hurt her to breathe. Looking up, the leaves on the trees were a mix of green and now blue. Damn, her eyes were still his symbol. Was he still watching?

She hoped not.

Would be really awkward.

Her head turned back towards the ground before she pulled out her phone and flipped to the camera. And turned it towards herself, trying to see what the other saw. The reflection surprised her. She looked paler than she should be, given the fact her skin is darker, she looked absolutely tired with dark bags under her eyes, she knew she looked messy due to collapsing, but the thing that stood out the most were her eyes.

She didn't know they looked like that, she thought she saw what they looked like but no. This was on a different scale. They were a mix of colors of Red, black and her cobalt, and they mixed well within the teardrop flower.

It..was a surprise to say the least.

Auice was tempted to rush forwards as the girl nearly collapsed, but she felt like it would be a terrible idea for now. She wasn’t even sure who this person was. All she knew was that this was another member of the Club, and supposedly followed DFY, if her eyes were anything to go by.

She wasn’t even sure what she was talking about, what did she mean tampered lungs? As the girl took out her phone, Auice took a moment to take in her features, she looked awful. She clearly wasn’t feeling alright as she looked like she was going to collapse again in a moment. Letting out a small exhale, she slowly began to make her way over before she stood directly in front of the girl. 

She was much shorter than the other girl, but that did not matter. Gently, she reached up and placed her hands onto her shoulders, lightly pushing her down to make her sit and lean against the tree.

“It would be best for you to rest, you will only injure yourself if you attempt to force yourself to move.”

She tried thinking about what her mother would say, she always managed to calm her whenever she was injured as a child. Perhaps doing the same tricks would help her speak to this girl.

“I don’t believe that your friends will be happy if you returned to them hurt.”

Great, she sounded just like a Lucid. As if that would calm the girl down at all. She had already seen the symbol that floated over her eye, so she had no reason to trust her. But she just hoped that she could convince her to at least rest.

She had no idea how she was going to convince this girl to trust her. But perhaps it would be better if they knew her name at the very least, she had seen her face and it's not like her name would change the fact that she could have her kicked out of the Club and boxcar just because of the symbol already.

“My name is Auice, what is your name?”

For a moment, when she blinked, she found herself overlooking a very familiar valley. With mountains soaring high overhead and a river slicing through the middle. She travelled through places like this before, leaving behind her Californian home to venture to wherever her heart led. She found so many beautiful places, some of which burned into her mind forever.

This place she stood above was the San Luis valley. The one she stayed at longer than she anticipated, trekking through the river and running from a horrible flood. What would've taken 36 days turned to three months. At the end of her journey, two months in, she found herself within a group of kids much like the Club here, they told her the same story from here.

Only many of the kids that spoke out about voices in their heads went to a mental institution.

She wasn't one of them, but she did follow a younger version of the God she follows now. Followed it here. To Redacre.

To her own hell.

Amaya blinked again, and understood the ringing in her ears prevented the fact she couldn't hear the other, it kept fading in and out. Hearing only bits and pieces. But unable to fully make out what she said. Something about her being hurt and how her friends wouldn't like it. It was then she figured out she was sitting down again, which led to her confusion of how the shorter girl managed to do that.

Finally she managed to hear her properly just when it counted, her name being Auice.

"..I'm..Ama..ya, awkward...mee..ting"

Auice waited for the girl to respond, but her mind seemed to be somewhere else at the moment. She wasn’t sure what to do so she simply awaited an answer. Only now taking in the surrounding area. 

The forest was dark, yet it held a sense of familiarity. She had run through this area hundreds of times. She knew it was fairly close to the boxcar but still wasn’t certain of the exact path they were on. Mud surrounded the area, making the ground slippery as the moon barely gave them any light.

Auice took out her phone before flicking the torch on. At least now she could see a bit better. She placed the item against a stump, bathing the area in the electronic light as she returned, only just hearing the words that were uttered.

“It is good to meet you, Amaya. Would you mind if I asked what you were doing out here?”

She had no clue why she was asking a dumb question like that. She doubted she would even receive an answer. Perhaps she was just trying to make the most of what she believed to be her final moments as a Club member. She was lost in her thoughts currently.

She remembered when she used to play songs on her family’s old piano whilst her father strummed on his guitar and her mother sang until she fell into a deep slumber. She remembered the sun shining through their old house as she ran down the halls. She remembered the friends she had as they all ran through the valleys and mountains.

She missed it all.

She wished she had found something like that here. Oh, how she wished to be back in simpler times. But it did not matter now.

She could only laugh at herself.

Inwardly but, still. The situation itself was ironic to her, not like Auice would know even if she said anything. Within the depths of her mind, was a memory she locked away. Unconsciously. But it ruled her. She started only slightly at the question. The other finally moved again, shining a light she finally saw and hence why she moved to cover her eyes on instinct.

But, why was she here? That's the thing she didn't know herself really. Well, she needed to get out of the boxcar after Chase explained the lot of what exactly happened to her directly, but it was really up to her to figure out how the heck she was meant to work in tune with it. But.

"Just..wa..lking. I stay...in th..e..boxc..ar" bloody hell why couldn't she do this? Agh "all...da..y and ni..ght" gets lonely. She grinned though, hiding that last thought and shoving it from view. It wasn't a lie, she had nowhere else to go. After all, not one of her family was here. No one had cared until-

She had to physically clamp her hands over her mouth to keep from screaming, even though it was really really hard not to. It was completely out of nowhere but holy shit the symbol that resided on her chest burned so strongly and pulsed so much that she felt everything in her body scream in agony due to the fact she did not know how to work with it yet.

"This is an interesting sight

We have come to seek out the lost eye

And we have found the miscreant

That found their way in"

This time Amaya couldn't hold back the scream.

The laugh that the other girl gave confused her, she tilted her head as if to ask the unspoken question about it. She winced slightly as the girl flinched away from the light. She hadn’t thought about how it would affect the girl’s eyesight momentarily.

Ah, of course, she was one of the members that had never returned to their homes. She wasn’t sure how those people lived. Surely they must have missed their families members, the ones that they grew up with and loved. She simply couldn’t believe that they were fine with leaving them all behind.

Her eye started to burn. The symbol around it glowed brighter as a familiar feeling overtook. She knew exactly what was happening and hope battled with fear. She wasn’t sure what to say, nor what to do. 

Her eyes burned as she shut them. Revealing the message that burned behind her eyes.

Her Watcher had been searching for her. And here she was, speaking to another Voice’s follower, a follower that had been physically marked by said Voice.

She was terrified of what they would say.

"Your parents are waiting for you, Auice"

Amaya couldn't stop screaming.

The pain was so intense she physically couldn't handle it.

It felt like someone was digging into her flesh and pulling her bones out after ripping through skin.

It hurt so much.

"It is advisable to listen

We will deal with this one"

The teen curled in on herself, unable to catch her breath and unable to stop. She felt like she was dying, this was NOT how she wanted to go. She refused to go this way but she couldn't control her body. Panic had completely taken over and she couldn't calm down.

Guess it was luck that someone else heard her from deeper within the forest.

And now was headed their way, quickly.

Though of course Amaya didn't know that, not in her state.

The Watcher speaking her name broke her out of her stupor, as well as the screams from the other girl. She flinched from the pain in her voice as she took a few steps backwards, intent to listen to the Voice’s word.

She tried to drown out the screams, using the thought of her parents as a way to block it out. But the girl would just not stop, she kept screaming and would not fall silent. She knew that eventually the Watcher would call the Angel to silence the child, to place them back into the song.

It wasn’t her place to intervene. The Voice had requested that she return to her parents. Perhaps then she would receive an explanation for the marking.

She didn’t want this at all. It shouldn’t be like this.

She turned on her heel before she reached her phone.

“Wait!” She called out, she wasn’t sure what she was doing, and the stutter she held wasn’t helping at all. “T-This one can still be saved… She believes this one can rejoin the song.”

She could hear movement from inside the forest, she didn’t have much time. Something was on its way and she wasn’t sure what. She needed to be quick. She had no idea how she would explain the other girl’s markings to the Watcher, but she would still try her hardest.

“This one just needs guidance, she doesn’t understand.”

"You do not understand, little eye

What sins this child has committed"

The teen was coughing again, harshly. Her lungs unable to function properly. Something felt like it was closing in on her heart. Everything was getting darker. What the hell did Auice mean?! What was she doing. Why was she doing this!?

"But..we will hear

You out"

It seemed annoyed by something. Something small, insignificant but steadily growing at the minute. It did not get know why, or of the marking underneath the teens clothing.

"It seems.."

"ENOUGH"

She let out a sigh of relief as the Watcher accepted her concerns. She had heard that not many would listen to people nor hear them out. She was just glad that her Watcher was so kind to her. She just needed a moment to collect her thoughts.

“She believes tha-”

She was cut off by the sudden shout. Flinching backwards as she took a few steps. How had the person gotten there so quickly she would never know, all she knew was that they had arrived and that they were loud.

She almost tripped over a branch as she moved backwards, stumbling slightly as she backed up into a stump, her phone was on it and likely hid her features from whatever had shouted due to the light. Her eyes searched frantically as she tried to spot whoever had made the call.

She had a moment to think about the Watcher’s words. She had no clue what this child had done to cause her Watcher to want to deal with her themselves, and she probably didn’t want to know. But she still believed that they could be saved. The Voice promised that they would save everyone they could.

She would help see that promise fulfilled.

"YOU WILL NOT EVEN TOUCH THIS CHILD, WATCHER"

Amaya recognized that voice, the pulsating that was so damn painful, that burned so much, seemed to fade away the moment he showed up. She couldn't even speak, she was having trouble breathing.

"I am terribly sorry, little petal, that you had suffered such agony. I am not one for needless suffering, it was too soon to face such a threat"

Die For You.

That could only mean..Chase ran in at that moment, just as the Watcher spoke once again. But she did not care, she knew she would be safe. She could see him. Standing directly in front of her, facing off something only the God could see. With the adult running towards her specifically.

She never thought she would be so greatful to see an adult heading towards her in her whole life.

"This does not concern you

I suggest leaving, traitor"

What had she done?

Many things.

"I will not leave her alone, she called out, and I answered. It is you who has to leave."

She never heard him so...pissed off before. Really, she hadn't. Neither did Chase, who was currently holding her as she struggled to breathe. Damn, this day was already eventful and it wasn't even Night. Though to be fair, this was a surprise for all of them. Her eyes were the teardrop flower again, only they were a brilliant mix of her cobalt blue eyes and maroon red. Dang.

Auice was at a loss. The Voice sounded angered. Her Watcher called them a traitor. Was this another Voice? Surely it couldn’t be. She had seen when two Voices interacted before, and her ears were still sore from that.

But this was different. This Voice was angry, and she was stuck in the middle of it. Perhaps there was a way they could all just leave. This was not good for any of them, and there was another person approaching.

Her eye burned as the Ward appeared, a bright glow emitting from it. It burned yet held no true heat. She could feel her memories warping, just like she had felt when she moved through the Red doors. It confused her.

“W-What the hell is happening?”

She felt like she shouldn’t have spoken, that she should have stayed quiet, yet she could not stop herself from speaking. She felt the eyes of the people snap to her as she froze. 

She could see the dim glow of the flower from the girl’s eyes. It was strange, the glow from each symbol seemed to force the other to stop in its path, as if it was warding against the simple power that they may hold.

Amaya could see her God turn to stare at Auice before back at the invisible Watcher, Chase was staring at the other, but the teen couldn't look away from him. Somehow it seems wrong she could see him, DFY, but then again. Nothing mattered in Redacre.

"..so. the Elders decided to mark yet another child."

"That is not of your concern

What we do to our Chosen

Is our business."

"Not when it causes UNNECESSARY PAIN"

He was furious. Chase and Amaya could hear that. Clear as day.

This was the first time either of them heard his shouting. And they thought TMC was loud.

The male looked down at the teen and whispered something quietly in her ear, and she responded by weakly speaking back. Everything was much of a pain, and things seemed horribly chaotic. First, a Watcher appears, more than likely calling for her death, then her God appears in a furious rage.

Was it possible he heard her screams, same as Chase, and had came down in response? Like it worked like that. Because it really doesn't.

Does it?

As far as Amaya is concerned it shouldn't be, but, maybe it was?

She didn't know, her mind was in a haze and it sucked.

Though she hated that red glow.

The damn red doors.

The Voices pounded in her head, the messages burned her eyes and she could feel her ears ringing from the pain. It stung so much, she just wanted it to stop. She should have taken her Watcher’s advice and returned to her parents.

She hated the anger she heard in the Voice, it reminded her of past fights that she hid from in the safety of her room. She just wanted it all to be silent for now, for them to stop arguing, for them to stop shouting.

She could feel her eyes twitching, her vision was blurry and her breathing hastened. She felt sick. She felt heavy. She felt weak.

Her arms were sagging and she was bent over, her hands clutched to her ears as she desperately tried to block out the noise. Her eyes were shut tight, the messages appearing one by one as she tried to avoid the burning to no avail. Her teeth were clenched tight, grinding slowly as she tried to stop herself from screaming. Her senses were being overloaded, she simply couldn’t handle this.

Suddenly, a wave of frost took over. She felt tired. She was cold.

She was on the verge of collapsing.

DFY was furious.

The Watcher was getting more anxious.

Amaya was losing patience.

She struggled to get up, pulling away from a stunned Chase. Fighting to her feet, fighting to walk. She moved.

She walked, moving past his form.

She was unsteady on her feet but that didn't stop her.

What was probably several inches felt like feet.

But that didn't stop her. She dropped to her knees and fell over the second she reached Auice's side. But she fought to get back up, grabbed her hand. And ran.

It was the adrenaline that started to pump through her that gave the boost, there really was only one place that she knew would get the fight out of their mind. It was only a matter of wondering who would get to them first, or if they could make it there in time.

She hoped they made it there.

Her eyes widened as the girl approached. She didn’t see it, but she heard it through the silence of the Voices, she was prepared to be struck, years of torment forced her into a role of habit. She flinched back, clenched her eyes and waited for the hand to strike her.

She did not expect a hand to gently entwine with hers.

She was dragged along at first, eventually managing to keep up as she struggled to grab her phone in the second she had. The torch cracking against the bark and shattering.

She wasn’t sure what was happening. She was on the verge of collapse one moment and being dragged the next. The glow around her eye dimmed as they moved along, although they could hear shouting from behind, her eyes burning slightly as messages attempted to be conveyed to her.

She was too caught up in the moment to answer whatever the Watcher had said to her.

She allowed herself to be taken away, the trees blurring past as she struggled to breath. Her vision struggled to return to its normal state with the speed the two were sprinting at.

“What are you doing?!”

Once again her voice was hoarse, it was painful. She wished she had something to drink, something to cool it down.

"Sav...ing...y..ou" Amaya hissed out through clenched teeth, forcing herself to move despite the shouts in her mind. She couldn't care about that at the moment. "Ju...st...run" it hurt to force her body to move but she did.

Deeper into the forest they went, there was one spot she knew better than anyone. As far as she knew she, she was the only one that knew how to get there. She found the way in this way on the other side of town, and now she knew a way near the boxcar.

She knew they were there when she heard the waterfall.

Amaya slowed down and just collapsed the second they stopped, breathing heavily yet somehow shallowly at the same time. But the God and Watcher were no longer burning their eyes and screaming in their heads. But the place itself was beautiful.

They were on a overhang, just above a waterfall that crashed down far below, with the sun beaming down and the trees encircling the space and keeping it safely blocked off at the same time. As if protecting the two kids inside of it.

The way Die for You shouted at the Watcher reminded her of the way she screamed at her mother before she left. They always fought over every little thing, She, trying to live her life the way she wanted. Her, wanting her daughter to follow the expectations laid down for her. Back and forth the arguments went, it wasn't until her little brother was injured by one of these arguments did her mother snap and crack her over the head with a glass bottle.

After that, Amaya ran. She grabbed her stuff and left in a fit of pure, undiluted rage.

Her mother called the police, and they looked for her. But she remained out of sight for days, never staying in the same place for long. Soon after leaving California.

That was how she came here. But the waterfall was her go to, her safe place and now might be Auice's. It didn't matter. No one could get to them here.

It was peaceful.

What was this girl talking about? What did she mean she was saving her? She nearly tripped over a branch as the other sentence was shouted. She didn’t have much of a choice as she was being dragged along by the other girl. Her arm strained under the force.

She wasn’t sure where she was being led. But she would never be able to find her way back at this rate, the landscape blurred too much, everything looked the same going forward as it did looking back. She had no idea where the hell they were.

Then she heard the rush of water crashing down onto rocks.

When the girl finally slowed down, she took a moment to sigh as she felt the lack of a presence in her mind. Her Watcher had stayed behind, as had the Voice, but she doubted they would be far behind. Only then she noticed where they were. An overhang with a waterfall, likely leading into a lake. The area was completely secluded.

Had the other girl brought her here to kill her and make it seem like an accident?

A look over the edge confirmed her suspicions, she would likely be dead the moment she struck the rocks below.

She was shaking at the thought. She didn’t want this. She just wanted her family to be safe, she didn’t want any of this.

Carefully, she took a step back from the girl, pressing up towards the nearest wall as she practically stared at the girl, her eyes completely filled with fear not only from the thoughts, but the previous encounter as well.

“W-Why did you bring me here?”

She had no chance at putting up a brave face. She was terrified of what would be done. The area was peaceful, it seemed as if wildlife avoided the area. 

No one would find her for days if she was injured here, if she was lucky.

This area seemed like an untouched paradise. It was obvious that few people had ever been here, and those that had rarely travelled here.

She wanted to return to her parents, she wanted to wake up and just be at home, with her parents downstairs preparing breakfast and playfully arguing. She wanted to return to the school to speak with the few friends she had made. She wanted to return to the boxcar to continue the missions she enjoyed.

She didn’t want to die.

Amaya never once even saw what the other did, just regaining lost air as she sat on the overhang. Actually she was pretty positive she would fall asleep if she didn't move and that was never good, which is why she pushed herself up and instead sat on the edge. It was then that she heard what Auice said, the fear that twisted her voice to knots undeniable.

"Wh..y did I bring you...here? Well.."

She looked back at Auice, mischief shining in her eyes, before she pushed off and plunged to the waters below. There was a huge splash followed by woops as the teen laughed. She knew the way up by heart, so it didn't matter if she dropped down or not. "To h..ave...fun!" She shouted up to the clifftop, her movements not as precise as she wanted them to be, but they were strong.

Each stroke brought her closer to the shore, hauling herself up onto it and laughing. "This...is m...y safepla..ce" she shouted again, grinning like mad even though Auice couldn't see it. "I will...make sur..e you don't...dro..wn. if your scared...of that"

She knew how to swim, always had, to her nothing mattered in the water. If she never fled her home and came here, maybe she would've been a surfer or a athletic swimmer. It didn't matter. She found this place and she loved it. The rocks that pooled around the waterfalls end didn't reach where she plunged, in fact she specifically knew where to go.

Each breath seemed easier then the last until, for the first time since she woke up from her blackout, she was breathing easily once again. This felt right, this place. It reminded her of a home she never knew but that was fine, it was still beautiful. Guess that's how Amaya found her way here, past the Sonic fence that kept them in. In a way, it was like she was the only one that could find it.

"Co...me on don't be...a scaredy...cat!" She teased, shouting the words once again. This seemed right. This place. It always has.

Her breath hitched as the girl jumped. What the hell was she thinking?!

Auice quickly scrambled over to the edge, peering down in an attempt to spot whatever remained of her. She was certain that the girl had perished on the rocks at the bottom. She let out a slight sigh as the girl emerged from the water. She had jumped far enough to land in the water. Thank God.

She could barely hear what the girl was saying. But she could understand it. She slowly raised herself to her knees as she glanced around the area. This place did seem fairly safe, it was secluded from the world. It must have been beautiful during the day, the waterfall would likely reflect the light into the area brightening the whole area.

But, what did this girl mean by ‘have fun’. After everything that had happened moments ago? How could she even think about it? Surprisingly, the thought brought a small chuckle out of Auice. She didn’t remember the last time she had properly laughed, it felt strange to her. Her mind had been stuck with serving the Voice and protecting her family. She wasn’t certain when the last time she even attempted to have fun was.

The other girl wanted her to jump, to join her in the waters below. She wasn’t sure where the rocks started or ended, nor did she know how deep the water truly was, she couldn’t see through the dark water. It was a completely insane thought, even if the other girl promised her safety she had no reason to trust her at all, they had only just met after all, she could simply let her fall onto the rocks below and be done with her, or she could run whilst she was stuck in the water and she would be trapped in the forest.

It had been years since she last swam. The simple look of the water brought back memories of sneaking out with her father to go swimming in the nearby lake at night. She always tried her hardest to beat him at the breathing contests they would have, he taught her how to live through the water, where the currents where and how to avoid patches of seaweed. He taught her everything she knew about the water.

She slowly stood, taking a few steps back from the edge, she heard the mocking words that emitted from the girl but she paid them no mind. After a few quick breaths, she leaped from the overhang and plunged herself into the cold water below.

She did not remerge until a minute had passed and she had reached the other end of the water, coughing as she attempted to regain her breath.

For once, a smile was stuck on her face, as she let out a small laugh.

Amaya turned up to the sky, knowing well what time of day it was due to how long she spent walking the distance and knowing when to start and when to stop. She had an eternal clock that never stopped ticking even when she reached Redacre. Funny how it turned out then. She found her way here just the same as she found her way across mountains.

She looked up as the other peered over the edge, looking down at her than towards the water, which was directly underneath the overhang. Hence why she pushed off and plunged down in the first place. She often called it a cove since it reminded her of one, smaller scale then she seen from others on her journey.

The teen watched as the other vanished from sight, and then came dropping down to the water below. Splashing her in the process as the water surged up and came down due to the human body that had just touched down moments ago. For a moment, she was about to leap in when she didn't resurface right away, since that's what you should do when you cliff dive. The reason for it is because you need to find a place to aim to rather than blindly go under the water and risk going farther then you have to.

Though she relaxed slightly at the sight of Auice coming up onto the land she resided on. She looked down at the water, before taking her shirt off and diving back in. Though in the moments before she plunged underneath the surface, you could see the lines that made up a certain teardrop flower, even though the skin around it was raw and red, the mark itself was pulsing. No wonder Amaya was in such pain earlier.

But you could also see the blackened skin that covered half her body, and all different types of scars. The more recent was because she was being stupid during the night and fell off a roof, more than once. And then got dragged half way across town. Mostly because that was her fault for tripping over herself and tumbling down the road that led to lower hoadly, and then getting dragged to a red door and nearly got shaped.

If it wasn't for Vex and her friends throwing around five flashbangs all at once she wouldn't be here right now. But that didn't matter, not in the water, where she was happy. Swimming underwater and bursting up out, purposely causing a wave as she laughed aloud. She was a fish, she loved to swim. Probably why she comes here so often.

Water dripped from her clothing as the cold wind bit at her skin, she stared up at the sky, connecting the many dots that lay across the sky to create pictures and images. She always wondered what was truly in the sky. She wished she could visit it one day.

She had never thought about what she would do once this was all over. One day, when they were all able to leave Redacre once more, she was likely going to travel. She had no idea what she would find in the world, but the mere thought of it kept the small smile on her face.

The splash of water drew her attention as she flipped in the water, looking back towards the girl as she dived down once more. Her eyes caught the markings on her back as she raised an eyebrow. She had never seen such damage done to a person before, even after every attack done to her person, every grab and every drag she had never been left with a mark that lasted more than a week. Except for one.

She glanced down to her hand, the blackened skin was still there from when she forced a firecracker to ignite in her hand to escape the children who had caught her. At times, she subconsciously picked at the skin. It stung at times, but it was never more than a mere nuisance at times.

Though she swore she could still feel the pain of that night.

She covered her face as the girl emerged once more, avoiding any water that would have landed on her face before she swiped a hand through the water at the girl, a faint smile on her face as she lay back in the water, simply floating on the top as she stared at the sky.

Her jacket flowed out from behind her, bobbing through the water, it was clearly weighing her down but almost didn’t seem to affect her at all. Though, still she questioned why the girl brought her here. She still had her doubts about the intentions from the girl, but she didn’t care right now,

“Thank you, Amaya.”

The words escaped her before she could think about them. But perhaps the girl deserved it. She was making her feel at peace, the first time she had in years.

Amaya had this stupid look on her face, looking at Auice as the water dripped down her face, about to be sneaky before hearing what she said.

She thanked her.

It threw her for a loop really.

It was so much so that she actually dipped below the water for a moment because she forgot she wasn't on land. She regained her rhythm though and quickly pulled back up to the surface, the upper half of her body out of the water as she rather expertly treaded the blue liquid, turning back towards the waterfall as it thundered down. It was all too easy to see the damned burn on her body.

She'd never forget how it happened.

But that didn't matter now, for probably the first time since waking up, she wasn't gasping "it's..no problem." She sounded embarrassed before she said so abruptly "oh my God I wish I had a celestial bandana that would be so awesome" it was a really random thought and it bursted out before she could stop it and she laughed, she had been laughing so much now..

"Honestly I don't know why I did what I did, but I guess it comes from the fact I didn't care if I died. I'm that kid you find that's constantly injured. I know you stalk, Auice" she looked towards the floating teen and splashed her with the water. Grinning. "I don't think that affects me, kind eye is a stalker and yet you see me hanging out with them. As well as Java. I don't think Stalkers are far from being saved, they just...don't know what they're doing. They think they can save others when in reality they're only harming themselves."

"Believing things can get better if they just listen to the one that says it will." Her tone grew bitter, resentful with the next words she spoke "my mother, she told me she'd stop drinking. Stop taking drugs. But she didn't. Never did. She kept abusing them and then went too far, burning me. She was neglectful but I believed she could be better but she never did." She sighed as the memories clashed in her brain, did she like them? No. But it felt better to finally say something. "She only got worse, she became abusive the more she drank, and when my dad never came back from the War.. well. Let's just say this scar here?" She pointed to her upper chest where, hidden by the bandana, was the beginning of a scar that was still healing.

"Is the outcome. So I ran. I didn't want to take her bullshit anymore and ran. Which is how I got to Redacre in the first place. I'm a Californian, Auice, I was born there and I ran here. I got no one. No one but me"

Auice raised an eyebrow as the girl fell into the water for a moment. She wasn’t sure why but she seemed confused for a moment. She tried to keep her eyes away from the scar but she couldn’t stop looking at it, questioning how she may have gotten the marking before the girl spoke. She wasn’t expecting the sudden laughter, nor how long it took for the girl to calm down from it.

She froze when she announced that she knew how she stalked. Frost ran over her skin and her heart stopped for a moment, she flinched when the water struck her as she slowly looked back towards the girl, tilting her head slightly at the grin.

She relaxed slightly when she mentioned other stalkers. This was one of the members that didn’t care if they were a stalker or not, or at least she hoped so. But her words confused her. How were they at all harming themselves? The Voice promised that they would protect her parents and they have not lied yet.

She was slightly surprised by the sudden storytelling. Perhaps this girl had pent up all these emotions and was only just getting to let them out now. She had helped her before, so Auice would not leave until she was prepared to go, she continued to float in the water and listened to the girl speak. Though, it was a surprise to learn that she was not from Redacre as well.

“Then, why did you come here, Amaya? What drove you to this town?”

She faltered slightly at the final statement, adjusting herself until she was at a point that allowed her feet to touch the ground beneath the water, placing a hand to her chin as she let out a slight him, before sighing.

“I don’t believe that you have no one. As you saw, you had your own Voice searching for you, and what I can only believe to be another person. That shows that you aren’t alone here. You do have people that clearly care for you.”

Her smile shrunk slightly, but she hid it as she looked towards the stars.

“I don’t remember why my mother decided to come here, I believe it was to live with my step mother. But either way, I am just glad that they are here with me. It has been much too long since my family was able to go a full morning seeing each other’s faces unmarked by guilt for once.”

Amaya looked at Auice with such an intense look in her eyes, scarred over and over, with memories that lasted longer than they should've, that it was a surprise she didn't lash out immediately. "You don't understand, yeah DFY and Chase are there for me but I don't have anyone I can call family. I'm alone. You have your mother's, and I have a God. But that doesn't mean much in ways of blood."

She pressed her hand against the sand and shifted against the grainy substance so she was leaning on it. "We're not so different you and I, but unlike you...I'm not supposed to be here. SAO wants me dead more than anything, but I'd die to save this town from them. And all the Stalkers who believe they can fix everything. Including you." She was staring again, but not at Auice. up. 

"There's so many things, we all want to fix. But there are just some things we can't even begin to understand. Your devotion to SAO is honorable but..if you give my god a chance..you'll see there's a difference between them and him." Amaya whispered, avoiding looking at the other altogether. There was nothing she could say but that, if she could at least convince her to listen..it would be a small win. "As for what drove me here? Let's just say he urged me on to find his older half" she never once forgot him. What was his name? Follow-Thy-Heart.

Auice couldn’t see the girl’s glare, but she swore she could feel it piercing her skin. As she listened to the girl, she let out a sigh. Another person trying to convince her to change her devotion clearly. It wouldn’t be so easy. 

“Family isn’t who you’re born with, it is whomever you decide is worth your time being called as such. You may not consider your mother your family, but another may for much different reasons. As such, why does blood need to convey who our family members are?”

She stood from the water, stretching her arms behind her. “SPEAK AS ONE doesn’t want you dead.” She emphasised the use of the Voice’s name. “They wish to save you. But the Club is always insulting them and harming them even. Every time, they give you three chances. Every single time. It doesn’t matter who you are, or what you’ve done, they will give you three chances. You may want to save this town, but how? We’re just teenagers still.”

She let out another sigh, slowly moving before she sat on the sand beneath her, her arms wrapped around her legs. “ I was alone before they found me. I was so alone. Every night was a complete terror, I hated it so much. You might think you were alone because you ran, but I was alone because I stayed and did the wrong thing. SPEAK AS ONE is the only Voice that’s actually helped me.”

“The rest? Well, they’ve practically ignored me. They don’t care for me. But the Voice? Three times I’ve met them, three times they’ve helped me, and three times they’ve been kinder than the rest, or a-at least my Watcher has. What they may be doing might be wrong, but they can change. They just need to see it.”

“Your Voice might advocate personal sacrifice for others. But mine advocates the thing I want most right now. Simply someone to just watch over me and not ignore me. How often would your Voice give me that?”

She avoided speaking about the marking. It didn’t seem right, she didn’t know what it was for but she trusted the Voice. She trusted them to keep their promises.

“I begged for help, I shouted all their names and only one decided to help me. I will forever be thankful for that.”

She let out a loud sigh, as she sat silent for a moment, before turning her gaze towards the girl once more.

“Tell me, if you had a chance to take it all back, and live happily with your parents as part of a happy family, would you take it?”

Amaya listened. For once she listened and didn't interrupt. "Family by choice isn't the same as family by blood. Most people would do anything for their biological family because it's in their nature to protect the ones they love. Guess that's why I ran at all. My brother vanished one day and I went after him when my mother did what she did. Guess it was stupid then"

She looked at Auice again, and laughed "oh SAO wants me dead, deader than anything! I invaded their place and I have plans, plans that could literally put their entire thing here at risk, much like Bells I could disappear! But I'm not stupid. No. I know what I'm doing. Would I tell you? No, of course my friends know, but that's because they are committed as well. We know how we will save the town, it'll take time but we can do it. All it takes? Well, you earn this information" her eyes shone with a deeper meaning.

She didn't trust her.

Amaya was refusing to say their plan, because Auice didn't earn the right to it. She knew how they would save the town, but it would take time. Who knew how much they had?

She looked at the other when she said being alone. "You had someone though. I never did until I got here. I was halfway here when I felt so bad I.." she cut herself off so fast, slamming her hand against her mouth, shutting herself up. Almost as if what she was going to say was something she didn't want to recount. I promised her..and the others. God I almost gave that away. "Anyway..the Gods have their hands full most of the time with everyone and everything...even with the war it's hard to get them."

"But Die-For-You, hes..I don't know. The nicest? Out of everyone I've seen, he's really the only one that lets others choose for themselves if they want something, encouraging like a father. While Thee-I-Dare is more about Choice, more now than ever, but my God...well he's the same but more so in what we want to do rather than make us do something, it's amazing really" another sigh "take it back? Go back to California? No. If I had the chance I wouldn't. Because my dad would still go to war, my mom would still drink. I would lose my brother and my sister would die. If I could have a chance to change it I wouldn't, because everything would happen all over again" she looked down at her reflection and then snapped her head up so fast towards the overhang.

The normality of her eyes faded into the teardrop flowers. Well shit.

"Though I don't need you to speak for me, young petal, I can't deny you are right. It's not my place to make someone choose what they follow, who they follow, but given the chance I do try. I'm just glad I met you before the Elders did. It would've caused far more problems then any one of us would care to admit." Though for Auice he only appeared as a voice, Amaya could see him, it still surprised her at times, knowing she saw a physical embodiment whereas others didn't.

"Your devotion to them is honorable, Auice, and I'm sorry that I never reached out to you. Your loyalty and mind lie in one place but is your heart really in it? Marked by force, rather than choice. You choose to stalk, yet you still have a heart. You don't need to devote to me, but I want you to know that I do care. More than my Elders, all you have to do? Say my name"

Amaya had sucked in a breath and dove under the water, her entire face red from embarrassment.

Once again, Auice sighed at the girl’s statement. She was certain that she had at least one that she considered family in this town. But she understood, but perhaps one day she could at least change her mind to see her own view differently.

She didn’t believe that the Voice wanted her dead. The Voice didn’t want to harm and did not harm people. They left that to the Angel. She remembered learning about the actions in a dream. She never heard of the Voice themselves harming the members of the Club with their own hands. She leaned back against the ground, propping herself up on her elbows as she spoke of the plans. Did she honestly believe that Auice expected her to trust her? They had only just met. “But how do you know it will work? A plan never survives till the end. Something will always go wrong. Tell me, will you be happy with the knowledge that your plan may succeed, but you will lose one of your closest friends, or perhaps even your Voice? Would you truly be willing to sacrifice that, or would you seek another way to save the town?”

Auice already had enough information. The girl had already let too much slip. But Auice didn’t plan to report it any time soon.

She scowled as the girl claimed that she hadn’t been alone. She had spent months secluded and trapped, without anyone to speak with, without anyone to believe her. “You say that I had someone, but who exactly? I was stuck alone. You are not the only one who has been isolated. Just because I was with my parents does not mean they gave me the attention I begged for, and I understand that the Voices are busy. But I still believe that they could have helped me if they wished so.”

She struggled to believe that the girl’s Voice was the ‘nicest’ as she claimed. But she had never met him herself, so she had no evidence to go off of. Simply letting out another sigh as she looked towards the clouds in the sky once more as she opened her mouth to respond, before she froze as she heard the Voice.

They had been followed.

Instinctively, she quickly stood. Her muscles tense as she stared at the girl in the water, half expecting her to jump towards her. She scowled at the use of her name and the base command spoken to her.

“Tell me then, DFY. You wish for me to state your name, for what? So that I may become another pawn in the alliance to be used in your war? To be sacrificed for the so called ‘ultimate price?’ Not all of us wish for death. Some of us just wish to be able to grow up, to have their families with them constantly. But in the end, you just want us all to die for something. Well, I’m not going to die for anything. Because I am going to live for everything else. So tell me, why should I even utter your name? If I have nothing to give for it, and you have nothing to give to me. Just so that I may be bound to you?”

"That is my ideal, but in the end, it's you that chooses to do those things not I, I only help them find their cause, it's they that truly find the will to die for it. Though I do encourage those lost in the depths of fear to find our light. You see Auice, just because you heard of me in one way doesn't mean I am bound by those rules, you see us as how you think of us to be. You choose this. I use no one as a pawn, I am not my Elders. I don't hide and let my hosts do the talking. I am there when you need me.

You don't have to say my name, I don't want you to, you have the option just as Amaya does with them. Some things are choices and you have your own voice to pledge your own allegiance to whomever you desire. Though I will be there if you say my name, dying is one cause and living is another. The ultimate price is knowing that you have done the job you have claimed yourself right. Not just death. But also life."

It was amazing how much patience the Voice had in him. Honestly it was a surprise to Amaya who was hidden underneath the water, holding her breath as she just thought. It was a wonder why Auice was thinking he was trying to make her follow him, even she knew he was making it a choice. Just as he had done for her. Choices.

It all led down to the same path eventually, so why not make the most of what you have? She would rather die for her friends than watch them die. How many times has she fell into that coma? A lot. Though, she still knew that SAO wanted her gone. And Auice had a way to report it. It was in front of her. The evidence, the recordings. She didn't say too much at all. She knew that they already had grasped the fact she had a way to get people out.

It just mattered on how it was done. Her plan would work, she knew it would. Which was why she put a lock on her phone. Because it was hers and hers alone. No one else needed it. Within the end, she was just glad she fell into that lake years ago. Finally, she knew she had to say something and go up for air, and when she did?

"Dude he's clearly offering you the CHOICE to do it, he's not saying you HAVE to. It's an OPTION"

“I’m afraid that I will not be saying your name. SPEAK-AS-ONE is the Voice I choose to follow. Not you, nor the others. At least not yet.”

Auice had plans of her own. She had gone weeks without sleep to convey her thoughts and plans.

“No, you do not let your hosts do the talking. You let them die and then take their Voice if you so require it, like the Scholar has done. To my knowledge, SPEAK-AS-ONE is the only one who’s Voice is still alive. My choice was made long ago, and I will be sticking by it. They have saved far too many times for me to simply begin questioning them.”

She raised an eyebrow as the girl emerged from the water, letting out a sigh as she crossed her arms.

“Amaya, did I ever state that he was trying to make me follow him? Or was I simply pointing out the fact that the moment that I state his name that I will be bound to him in knowledge? The Voice already chose to mark me, I do not know why they decided I would be worth it, but they placed it on me and I will still wear it with pride.”

Amaya shrugged, hauling herself onto the land just before she went shrieking back into the water. Yelling something completely incoherent and stunning even DFY. The only words that could even be properly made out was Lost One. Whatever that meant. "I AM SAFE UNDER THE WATER JESUS CHRIST WHAT THE FUCK" and back under she went.

For a long minute, the God said nothing. Before it was actually noted he was trying to see into the water. He was right there, trying to figure out what drove the teen to such a panicked state. To the point she dove head first into the water. Screaming. 

"I am very confused"

It would be lying to say there wasn't concern in his eyes, and definitely confusion.

"Though my Hosts die of their own will, I don't control that part of them really, they make it their cause to die for me, and I can't really change that" he shrugged, then continued to peer into the water and around the area. Clearly befuddled.

As the girl plunged herself back into the water, Auice could only stand there silent and confused. Before quickly looking around to see what she might have seen that had caused her to scream as such. Nothing. What the hell had she seen?

Her spine shook with ice as he spoke once more, he sounded closer than ever. As if he was standing right next to her.

“I am quite confused as well. But, you may not be able to change the way your hosts perish, but neither do you advocate against it. You could practically have an army of people who would blindly die for you with a single word and you would never speak against it.”

"Do you not think I try? Dear Auice, once someone makes it their will and passion to die for me, there isn't much I can do. If it is what they wish I, then I have to accept it. Though I have, on multiple occasions, kept Amaya from dying. She has her cause but even I think it's reckless. My brother, Thee-I-Dare, even suggested against it. I can't change what she wants to do, I can only be there to stop her from being...insane."

DFY sounded..strange. remorseful. Somehow, this conversation was bringing up a different side of the God, and whatever it was Amaya could hear in her head alongside something else, muffled by the water even as she drove to the surface for air and then dove under again. Not before yelling incoherently again, something about the past.

"Tell me, if someone you knew was going to do something that you thought was stupid, but no matter what you said they wouldn't change their minds. Wouldn't you just give up? Accept that they would do it no matter what happened to them, even though it was insane."

DFY had no control over what his hosts have done and will do, nor his followers or his chosen. Much like all the other Voices, he is as helpless as he is influential. Once you get someone on the path you want, there's nothing you can do to change it.

Within Amaya's mind, she felt kind of hurt. But at that moment it registered that Auice never wanted the Mark and she choked in water on accident. She swam desperately to the surface again and hauled started coughing out the water, turning to look at the other while treading the blue liquid. "...I didn't know they could be so cruel." The next thing she said threw DFY for a loop. "Speak as One, well, I renounced them. I don't care about em. I can say their name and there's really nothing they can do about it. I need another Light so I can renounce HTS as well. The dick.."

And she swam underneath the water because at this point, why not?

“I don’t believe you don’t try, but I do not believe that you don’t advocate against it. You’re all about sacrifice. Those who sacrifice themselves to you must be your greatest pleasure and happiness. All I want is to not be alone anymore, I want my family safe and I just want to be able to wake up in the morning without having to wonder if anyone I knew saw me walking whilst I slept.”

There was a hint of hostility in her tone, but it was mainly swept under the fear that dominated her Voice. But she was clearly not trying to show it at all.

“It depends on what this stupid thing was. If it was something dumb like climbing an extremely tall tree? I’d watch in amusement and would make sure they wouldn’t harm themselves, but if it was to attempt to break into Saturation Control, then I’m afraid I’d need to stop them before they could get themselves killed. So no, I would not give up.”

As she heard the comment about the Voice, she turned towards Amaya, anger in her eyes before it died, a hand hovering over the symbol that marked her skin.

“T-They aren’t cruel! They marked me for protection if anything. You may have renounced them but I follow them. It was your choice to speak to the Voice like that, but it was mine to follow them.”

She let out a shaky breath, her arms wrapping around her as she attempted to wipe off some of the water. 

“Sometimes, that is just what happens in life. But I don’t care. I will follow them as long as they continue to help me.”

Again she swam up for air as DFY continued to stare at Auice. Then the teen spoke "look, Auice, you're determined to believe SAO isn't bad. But look at yourself for a moment, you're not happy. Yeah, it gets lonely in the boxcar but I'd rather be lonely there then in constant danger out in Redacre. I was marked but it was by Choice. You weren't. The marks aren't for protection, not like DFY, SAO laid claim to you without you wanting it. Do you really want to continue to live like this?" She swam towards the shore and hauled herself onto the land, looking down at the teen.

But she herself was crying. Her voice was steady however. "I know what it's like to live how you do, wondering at every turn what's going to happen next and what's going to happen to you. Bet you never had to hope you'd wake up in bed without hearing screams from in your own basement. Auice, what's going on is affecting you badly, yeah I renounced SAO, but it was because I didn't want them to get to me the same they exploited you.

In reality, they have a good idea with unity and community but forcing it on people isn't how you do it. If SAO wasn't here, if the Voices weren't here. We'd have very different lives, wouldn't we? To the point you'd be happier and I'd be..dead"

That was when the Voice reached out to place a hand on the smaller teens shoulder

"you have the faith and belief that everything will be alright, and it is not my pleasure to see those I care for die. I believe you have the passion to work towards a brighter tomorrow if you change the way you think while following my Elders. It doesn't matter if you follow them or not, what really matters is your mind, this is what you can change. What truly matters aside from your mind is your heart, in the end we are the ones that want you awake

And besides, none of this is happening elsewhere, so you can't just pass this on as if you're okay. You're not. Even I can see that."

Amaya reached forward and grabbed the teens hand again, looking at her and saying "I can say we aren't trying to make you change who you follow but, if you really want to have someone by your side. Just..find me. Or call him. You may have heard he's nothing but someone who only cares about death, but he's really a good guy. If he wasn't, why is he still here? Why is he actually trying to say 'i will be here for you' yet your too insistent on believing he's bad. We're both just kids trying to survive here, no one believes anything we say, no one but them. So just... please...try and listen. Please.."

Die-For-You was looking between Auice and Amaya, mostly wondering what the other would say. He had a feeling it would be outrage. It was hard not to guess. 

Auice was silent. She refused to believe it, she kept shaking her head and muttering out denials. The Voice had helped her so many times, it had saved her life and protected her. She refused to believe that the marks were not for protection.

She was shaking violently. Her breathing was heavy as the girl approached. Her throat felt constricted, as if it was trying to strangle her. She didn’t know why the other girl was crying, nor why her voice sounded so distraught. She had others that would help her, she had people in the boxcar to speak to. She had friends to return to and a family to gain. Auice just had her parents, the few people she trusted, and the Voice. She refused to admit that she was being used at all.

Though she knew if the Voices never existed, then perhaps she would never have been left alone, perhaps she would still have her family whole once again. But she despised how the girl spoke of death so simply.

Her muscles tensed when the Voice had placed a hand on her shoulder.  
She hated how the Voice spoke of her faith, she hated how calm he sounded, she hated how sorrowful his tone was. She hated it all.

Yet she couldn’t bring herself to move. Even as the other girl took her hands into her own. Her hands shook enough that the girl would have to hold them tightly. She couldn’t move, she was completely frozen as she stared at the hands that were entwined with hers, idly her thumbs gently ran over the scars that marked them.

Finally, she felt a drip on her cheek. A single tear fell from her eyes before it was joined by hundreds of others. She fell to her knees as she simply sobbed. She had pent up so much of her sorrow and this one girl had finally allowed it to be released with her words.

She would never believe that the Voice wasn’t going to protect her, but perhaps she would take up the offer of friendship. The offer to have someone that would listen to her. The offer to not be alone again.

She had been alone for far too long.

She had forgotten what it was like to be able to place your emotions onto someone else and just talk. But in her case, she was sobbing. 

It hurt her throat to cry, but she simply couldn’t stop it.

For a moment, Amaya didn't know what to do. Watching as the other sank to the ground in a fit, mumbling left and right but unable to stop sobbing. It felt weird for someone to have ran their fingers over the scars, as most would, but that didn't even matter. The taller teen dropped down, pushed DFY's hand away and wrapped her arms around Auice's small frame. She wasn't sure how many times she had to comfort someone that was terrified over their new situation.

But this was different.

Somehow, it reminded her of a time she felt when she lost her sister and brother, hopeless and lost. Unknowing of their fates. In the end she turned that emotion to rage and screamed to the world of violence and anger, when all she felt was sorrow.

But that didn't matter right then. None of it did.

"I..I won't let you be alone anymore. Honestly? We need to rely on each other, not go at each other's throats, this is a war and we have to face it knowing at any time we can die but that doesn't mean you have to go alone." Her voice cracked, unable to keep it steady as her own wall broke. "I may be in the Blackout Club, but that doesn't mean I'm not alone, because in reality..we all are. We're just broken kids trying to survive the best we can..even you and me"

She fell silent and only hugged the other. Never once realizing that she still was without a shirt. Somehow she didn't notice, not when her own mind travelled from past to present and then future, crying all the same as Auice. She completely forgot that DFY was there until he spoke

"Not that I aim to ruin the moment but uh..little Nightshade you are..still without your shirt.."

complete silence from Amaya as her eyes opened in an instant, and then her entire face turned a bright scarlet as she automatically hunched her shoulders before pulling away, grabbing her celestial hoodie from DFY, and hurriedly put it on. And then proceeded to chase the God away, yelling in another language. Her face burning from embarrassment as the Voice simply vanished at a certain point.

Of course, the taller teen came back, looking really awkward as she hung her head slightly and coughed into her hand. "Mm, sorry about that uh..no more boys now?" She laughed in a high pitched tone, though it was clear she was really embarrassed to no ends.

Auice was cold as the girl embraced her, shaking as she simply sobbed into the other girls shoulder for a few moments. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been embraced like this, it felt nice. She gave a few simple nods to the words that she spoke. She dreaded being alone once more and this girl offered salvation the same as the Voice had. She would take anyone as long as they would make sure she wasn’t alone.

Auice didn’t care that the girl was in the Club, she was as well for all she could say. Despite helping the Voice and stalking members of the Club, she still slept and spent days in the boxcar. If only to escape the constant blackouts.

She felt a bit of hope for once, as well as a semblance of thankfulness, before DFY ruined it all by speaking.

She almost fell over from the sudden release, and she felt herself wishing to return to it but merely glanced up confused as the girl chased the voice away. She wasn’t sure what the girl said as she ran, but it clearly was profanity. She stayed in her kneeling position as she ran, when she eventually returned and spoke, Auice gained a small smile, before a laugh burst from her.

After a moment of calming down, she eventually smiled towards the other girl once more.

“My mother has a saying. Smiles are contagious, so if I need to smile at nothing to get you to smile at something, then, in my book, I’m doing something right.’ I think you’ve done that saying to the point honestly.”

She stood after a moment, moving over to the water as she looked into it.

“Thank you, once again Amaya.”

Amaya smiled back, her face still beat red, before she watched her turn back towards the water. She listened, about to say something before she was thanked again. What for this time? She didn't say anything more. Only pull her phone out of her pocket and flip to her gallery. Pictures consisted of places she's been to many times over in dreams. And of course when she wandered the states.

It was in that folder much more existed too, of a place marked for something. But whatever it was she didn't linger long before looking up at Auice. "Life is a mystery and you never know what is going to cross your path, so make the best of it while you can before you no longer have the capability to" she quoted, grinning like a dork before she promptly sat beside the other.

"If we make it till we are adults, we are officially legends, hah!" She was laughing again, her eyes once again their normal Cobalt blue. Then she got an idea. "Hey..say cheese"

Auice wasn’t paying full attention as the girl took a seat beside her, merely nodding as she spoke. Her head filled with thoughts about the recent events before a single statement caught her attention. ‘Make it till they’re adults’? It was thinking about how she had never thought about that.

“Make it until we grow up? That would be… interesting. I’ve honestly never thought about it, but I do wonder what will happen when we all eventually grow up. I doubt many people would care to stay here if they had the choice to leave.”

The command caused her to falter, a confused look appearing on her face as she turned to face the girl, her head tilted slightly.

“Cheese?”

She was surprised as the girl took a photo of the two of them. Thus cementing the night into their minds.

As Auice stared in silence as Amaya laughed. The sun rose ever higher and lit up the hidden paradise. One thing after another, fate led them here. Two different girls of two different pasts, and yet they still met somehow and in some way they became friends. If there was one thing that anyone could've learned, is that it doesn't matter who you follow or who you worship.

Because in the end, all we are, is human. And humans can always look past their darkest fall to see the shining high.  
Guess that's how we met at all, all because we both lit the world in our own ways.


End file.
